Close Enough
by someonestolemycookies
Summary: Percy x Annabeth Oneshot All Human Mostly close enough isn't really enough but sometimes it has to be.


Percy is a sophomore and the anchor for the school's swim team. Sometimes he wishes he were on the football or basketball team instead. It's not that he likes those sports more than swimming, it's just that the cheerleaders are never required to go to swim meets. Not even the ones held in the school.

He doesn't like _all_ the cheerleaders, just one. Annabeth. Annabeth Chase who is the smartest (and prettiest) girl in his school. You wouldn't think so by just looking at her, with her perfect princess curls and startling grey eyes you would think she was just another pretty face but you'd be wrong. So wrong.

He tells his best friend Grover one day. Not about his crush, he's known since they were twelve, but about swim meets. Grover nods sympathetically but he doesn't quite get it. He and his girlfriend Juniper are on the cross-country team so they're always together during meets and training.

Percy only gets to see Annabeth during homeroom, lunch and study hall because she's smart and has advanced placement everything. This makes Percy feel both regret and gratitude, regret because he'd wished he applied himself more to his academics and gratitude because she doesn't have to watch him struggle through math and sleep during english.

He's talked to her a few times during freshman year but he always ended up blushing so he avoids one-on-one conversations with her after his first few attempts. He sits close enough to hear her talking but not close enough for her to talk directly to him.

That year Thalia Grace, Annabeth's best friend returns from boarding school. Thalia is his neighbour and still can't drive so he offers her a ride to school every morning. Sometimes they pass by _Annie's _(Only Thalia calls her that, and only because it annoys her) house because Thalia knows Percy likes her and Annabeth gets lazy to drive.

Once, Thalia feigns a headache but makes Percy promise to pick Annabeth up and take her home from school because Thalia promised her a ride and Annabeth's car is in the garage. Percy panics and thinks it will be awkward but finds himself perfectly at ease with her.

The conversation is going well until Annabeth asks him why he started avoiding her. It takes all of Percy's self-control to keep driving in a straight line and he can't think of a single word to say to her. Finally, when the car is parked and there's no escaping it he just says he's been preoccupied with swimming stuff.

Annabeth doesn't buy it because she's smart and Percy is a terrible liar but her eyes and tone tell him she's giving him the benefit of the doubt.

Things go on as usual until Percy's first swim meet and she's there. She's wearing her cheerleading outfit—_were their skirts always that short?_ and she's surrounded by a few other cheerleaders.

He waves but doesn't say a word to her. It's his best meet ever. The principal, noticing that the presence of the cheerleaders seems to boost performance decides to make it mandatory for them to attend home games and Percy has no problem with that. Away games might be a problem but he's decided not to think about it for now. The situation isn't perfect, but it's close enough.

That year, Percy is made captain of the swim team and they win the state championship. He and Annabeth talk more often but nothing happens between them because Percy is busy trying to improve his grades so he can be a junior next year.

He passes 10th grade but only barely, he has to get a tutor for the next year but he's not upset about it. Apparently though, his mother is. She sends him to New York to be with his dad. Percy admires his dad, but they haven't spent a lot of time together so he's a little upset.

His dad isn't really from New York, he's just there for some kind of summer conference with this huge corporation he and his family run. He says Percy will start to learn a little more about it this summer and takes him to listen in on meetings and observe.

Not everyone in his dad's family likes Percy. He knows they didn't exactly approve of his mom so he takes it in stride and enjoys the company of the family members who do like him. He's surprised to see Annabeth as he's walking through Central Park, one of the few days his dad allowed him to wander around on his own (okay, so he ditched his bodyguard, big deal).

He calls her over and learns that she's doing basically the same thing he's doing only with her mom in an architecture firm. Percy tells her it's really cool that she found such a unique career path. It makes Annabeth blush and he spends the rest of the afternoon trying to get her to blush again.

It's getting really late and Annabeth is going to be in so much trouble, Percy too, so they say goodbye only to realise they're walking in the same direction. They laugh and finally say goodbye when they are 100% sure they won't be going in the same direction. Annabeth texts Percy telling him she's grounded and Percy replies 'ditto :(.' They don't see each other again for the rest of the summer but Percy's phone bill bumps up significantly.

Percy meets Rachel Dare, the intern of one of his older cousins. She's an aspiring artist but her dad who is a real estate tycoon insisted that she do something useful this summer. She admits that she took the internship because she thinks Apollo, his cousin, is a little cute but that he's cute too. Percy thinks Rachel is okay when she's not hitting on him.

His dad decides to take time off to sail with Percy, something they used to do whenever his dad showed up when Percy was a kid. They sail home to Florida and it's pretty awesome and manly and his mother isn't capable of being completely happy because she worries but it's close enough to happiness.

Percy wishes his parents would get back together but he knows it won't happen. Being disapproved of by Poseidon's family made Sally wildly unhappy. They weren't exactly discreet about their disapproval. So Percy is just happy that they are on good terms although it always gets awkward whenever they forget that they are no longer married and oh, Poseidon has a new wife (and a stepson who's life mission is to hate Percy).

This isn't a problem anymore because Sally has met someone. Percy's dad is a little jealous but even he admits that he's happy even if he makes fun of his last name. Blofis really does unfortunately sound like Blowfish. Even Sally had to stop from grinning when Poseidon intentionally misheard Paul as he introduced himself.

Percy thinks it's a little petty when Poseidon gets him a new car after Percy mentions that Paul offered to work on his truck's engine with him on weekends but he really can't complain. It's a _really_ nice car. And he figures his family situation is close enough to perfection as is.

Percy's popularity increases by quite a bit thanks to the captainship, his new car and the few inches he's managed to grow this summer. There's also a new confidence coupled with his endearing and natural humility and he attracts quite a few new admirers.

He's clueless through it all because all he sees is Annabeth who is even prettier than the last time he saw her in New York (the corner of 5th and 23rd, he remembers). Annabeth who no longer has the same homeroom and study hall block as his. Annabeth who is his tutor. Annabeth who two months into the school year…has a boyfriend.

He finds out through Thalia when he asks why they never pass for Annabeth anymore. She looks at him in surprise, "Well, her boyfriend Luke picks her up everyday." He mouths the word boyfriend a few times before dropping Thalia off in front of school. He decides to ditch the entire day which includes swim practice and tutor sessions with Annabeth.

He drives around in his new car blasting angry music he'd gotten from his friend Nico. Percy spends less time with Grover because seeing him and Juniper happy together makes Percy sad and he doesn't want to feel that way so he spends more time with Nico who is single and equally hung up over some girl he met over the internet. Grover, luckily, understands and they manage to spend _some_ time together.

Percy works very hard to pull his grades up on his own, he no longer goes to tutor sessions with Annabeth and she's only asked him about it once and she hasn't told the principal or his coach.

His first meet of the year is an away game and he swims as if the devil were after him. They win but Coach Hedge tells him he seems unfocused and on the edge. Percy snaps at him but the coach lets him off with a warning.

Percy nearly gets into a fist fight with one of his opponents after the meet is over. He doesn't even remember what the swimmer said but it made Percy's blood boil and he slammed the guy into a locker. The other swimmers intervened before anything else happened and but the encounter is close enough to a fistfight that the coach tells him he's suspended for the next four meets.

Percy is a little happy since those meets were mostly home games and she would be there but then the coach tells him he has to be there as captain and as penance. "See if watching your team sink or swim without you won't have you itching to get back in with a new attitude." He's a really punny guy, Coach Hedge.

They win the second meet by the slimmest of margins and only because Percy changed the swim order before the meet.

Percy doesn't look at the cheerleaders, doesn't want to see Annabeth and Annabeth's face and legs and— gods, he misses her _so_ much. So he pretty much pouts the entire meet, even after the meet.

He stays a little bit after, just sitting there, staring into the pool. Maybe he should have taken up his dad's offer to do home school and travel with him for a year. He shakes himself out of it and walks to his car. He is surprised to see Annabeth.

She is yelling into her phone "Look, I don't know what's wrong, okay?! Could you just come over here and help me fix it or at least get me out of here?—Fine! Fine! Have fun with your friends while your girlfriend stays in a parking lot for the night!"

Percy wills himself to ignore her, but somehow he finds himself standing in front of her just close enough to make it deliberate while holding out his hand for her keys. She looks surprised (and a little mad) but likewise doesn't say a word when she hands them over after he shakes his arm insistingly.

He fishes her bag and books—seriously, his dream girl brings books to a swim meet? and locks her car. Percy gestures to his car and opens the passenger side door for her and hands her her things when she's buckled herself up.

They drive in silence for three minutes and just before Percy feels like his head is about to explode Annabeth tells him he has a nice car. He grunts in response but Annabeth takes that as a cue to go off on him.

She missed him and she was worried and everyone says he's changed. She's mad, she's really mad. And _hot_. Totally hot when she's glaring at him with her tear-filled—oh.

"Don't. Don't cry. I'm an idiot okay. So is your boyfriend but that's…I'm an even bigger idiot than he is."

He looks straight at her when he says this and slams his hand onto the steering wheel in frustration. Thank God for stop signs. A single tear escapes but she wipes it away angrily. "Damn right you're an idiot."

They don't say anything else but Percy's heart is racing. She _missed_ him. She _cared. _

They pull up to her driveway and he doesn't quite know how to say goodbye to her so they just sit there until Annabeth's father comes and knocks on the window. Percy manages to be just charming and respectful enough to merit a dinner invitation which he accepts after discreetly checking if it's okay with Annabeth.

Mr. Chase tells them to just hang out until dinner is ready and they spend 15 minutes chasing Annabeth's little twin brothers because they "borrow" Percy's car keys. They remind Percy of the _kerkopes, _tiny dwarves which caused mischief and liked to steal. He learned about them in History, the only class he didn't need tutoring for (except when it came to spelling maybe).

Dinner is great and five minutes into it, Mr. Chase tells Percy to call him Frederick which makes Annabeth's eyebrows disappear into her bangs. Percy likes her dad, he's a walking history book but he specialised in war history so he was very, _very_ cool in Percy's book.

Percy manages to win Annabeth's stepmom over by offering to do the dishes and simultaneously roping the twins into clearing the table. At the end of the night, Percy is sent off by the whole family and he doesn't have to worry about an awkward goodbye with Annabeth.

Annabeth texts him, the first text he's gotten from her since he started ditching tutor sessions. He still has her keys. Percy tells her he'll have them back for her tomorrow, he doesn't tell her that he intends to have her car back in her garage too.

The next day he convinces an acquaintance, Leo, who is just 16 but knows an insane amount of things about machines. The teachers call him a prodigy when they're not calling him a delinquent prankster.

They're not friends yet but Percy feels close enough to ask a favour from him. Leo agrees to help because Percy had helped him out with his long distance girlfriend, Calypso. Leo had wanted to surprise her with something but she lived outside normal delivery routes and Percy had dropped off the package while sailing with his dad.

They fix Annabeth's car in a jiffy, really, it only needed a new battery and Percy managed to get Leo to do a simple tune-up. Percy decided then and there that learning about cars was really important and awesome and when he tells Leo, it makes Leo happy and a little proud.

Both Leo's parents are mechanics, his mom owns and runs the best shop in town and his dad is famous for more than a few inventions, so he tells Percy to drop by sometime to learn a few things. In the future, Percy does. He's no Leo but he definitely won't be worrying too much about simple engine problems.

Percy lets Leo drive his car and Percy drives Annabeth's. Leo is thrilled because Percy's car is _that_ cool and just being trusted to handle someone else's baby (only Calypso and his parents have ever driven Leo's car) was also really cool.

Annabeth is not in a good mood when she opens the door, Sunday is family day but she's had to stay home because she'd had a major headache earlier so they went on a picnic without her. Leo Valdez, a boy she knows from school is standing in front of her and beside him is Percy. She really wishes she had brushed her hair before coming to the door. She stammers out a thank you but before she can invite them in, Luke pulls into her driveway. Percy sees him and mutters a quick 'catch you later' before practically shoving Leo into his car.

The next day Thalia enters his car with a look of mischief in her eyes. "So…" "Uh, good morning?" "I heard you're an expert with damsels in distress these days." Percy turns a violent shade of red and mutters "Just one damsel, and she already has a prince." "Oh, that? That's over. Thank the gods."

Percy reacts by letting go of the clutch. Thankfully nobody is close enough behind them so they don't cause any accidents but Thalia yells at him to 'chill the fuck out.' They get to school safely though Thalia swears his driving was so erratic throughout she still says she'd catch a ride with him after his swim practice.

During lunch he scans the cafeteria for Annabeth but he can't seem to find her so eats with his group of friends, Grover, Juniper, and Nico. He's jumpy and he feels like he should be looking for Annabeth.

Nico tells him to man up and just go look for her already, although he does so while looking at Percy's unopened pudding. Percy rolls his eyes but shoves his tray toward Nico and heads out. It's a good thing that he does.

Percy finds Annabeth in front of her locker, _with Luke_. Luke towers over her and he is annoyingly a few inches taller and a few pounds heavier than Percy so Percy decides to go for diversion rather than direct confrontation.

"Annabeth!" "Go away, kelp brain. The lady and I are talking." "Oh, well, I'll just tell the principal you said so, Castellan." Luke swears under his breath but buys it so he glares at them both and walks away.

Annabeth looks a little shaken up but seems to be just fine. "What does Mr. D want?" she asks, her voice indicating that she had no desire whatsoever to converse with their temperamental principal.

"Probably more Diet Coke from Silenus but nothing from you. I just thought you needed an out." "I could hug you." "You should." Percy replies after a beat.

Annabeth looks at him with her startling grey eyes and he feels like she's staring into his soul. Suddenly she's hugging him and he feels good—better than good, he feels _whole_. The hug lasts forever but ends too soon. The bell rings and they reluctantly step away from each other.

Percy walks Annabeth to class and he tells her it's so she won't have to face Luke alone, and really of course he won't be late for class (he is), but he just wants to be around her.

Later, after he is chewed out by Mrs. Dodds, his math teacher for being late, and by Miss Alecto for spacing out during English, Percy practically skips to swim practice.

He feels extra energetic, and he knows Thalia is still in the library doing an extra credit report, so he tells the coach he is going to stay and swim a few more laps. Coach Hedge nods approvingly and tells Percy his attitude is much improved but he's still not swimming for the next two games.

The next few months pass by in a blur. He spends more time with Annabeth. Thalia finally passes her driving test and she insists on driving them both, still thrilled at experiencing this kind of freedom and a little terrified of driving on her own.

One day, he decides to start carrying Annabeth's books for her. She thinks it's odd but she doesn't see what Percy sees. Percy sees all the guys in their grade as well as some seniors eyeing her like a piece of meat. It makes his blood boil and he needs to keep his hands occupied so he doesn't get suspended from swimming again. He walks close enough that their hands bump occasionally.

They lose the state championship and to make it worse, it's against his step brother's school. Triton taunts him as he leaves the locker room but before he can respond Annabeth is there and she's _holding his hand_. "Cool it, Percy. He's not worth it."

She drags him away and walks him around the empty halls in the school until he finds his voice and says "Thank you, I—I'm okay now." Percy is scared that she might let go of his hand now that he's not in danger of getting into a fight again but she holds on and leads him to the parking lot.

"Where's your car?" "With Leo in his shop, something about wanting to replicate the engine into a matchbox car. I hitched a ride with Nico but I guess he left."

Annabeth drives him home and it feels a little strange but Percy likes watching her drive. Her eyes always flicker toward the rearview mirror and she purses her lips at every stop sign, like she's holding her breath.

Ever since that day they alternate driving one another to school until Percy complains about feeling emasculated every time she picks him up and as a reward for using that word right Annabeth tells him he can pick her up everyday instead.

Percy has found another way to keep his hands occupied. He still carries Annabeth's books but he holds her hand with his free one. The first time he does this Annabeth raises a challenging eyebrow but doesn't say a word, Percy blushes fiercely but doesn't let go.

Sometimes she kisses him on the cheek as she alights from his car and he pretty much needs a few minutes before he can remember how to drive.

He's started opening her door for her "Well, this is new." "Your hands are full of books! I'm being prague." "Pragmatic! Prague is the capital of Czech Republic."" "I'm sure the citizens of the Prague are very pragmatic, same banana." Annabeth looks at him like she could kiss him and he really, really wishes she would but she looks away and the moment is gone.

Summer rolls in and Nico and Bianca di Angelo invite them to Malibu for a few weeks. They meet the person Nico's been mooning over and it turns out to be this handsome surfer dude named Bob. Percy is surprised at first and a little confused when Nico admits he crushed really hard on Percy in the past but it's cool and he's glad his friend is finally happy.

Grover and Juniper are sharing a bedroom and Bianca and Thalia shack up, having agreed to be roommates when Annabeth was still unsure about going. Percy offers the last bedroom for Annabeth's exclusive use, saying he can sleep on the porch hammock or the couch, but she just rolls her eyes and dumps Percy's bag in the room along with hers.

After they settle in they decide to just order in for dinner and have a campfire by the beach later that night and Grover is asking Percy if he remembers the number of the pizza place they had passed near the pier but Percy is too busy staring at Annabeth. She was wearing these _really_ _tiny_ pair of shorts and she was currently bent over the cooler fishing for a Dr. Pepper.

Thalia chucks a pillow at him and glares but Percy just tosses it back and walks over to help Annabeth look for the Dr. Pepper. "Uhh, here." "Oh, thanks. You could have just asked me to get you a Coke instead of coming over." Percy opens his mouth to explain but then shuts it. Even he knows he wouldn't be able to explain without offending her.

The pizza gets there and Percy and his friends and Annabeth (who is _definitely_ not just a friend) dig in. The campfire is fun, they roast marshmallows and do other corny things and generally just have a great time.

Annabeth complains that her legs are asleep so Percy offers to walk around with her. Thalia raises an eyebrow. "What? It's not safe to just wander around the beach alone." Never mind that they are surrounded by miles of beachfront owned by the di Angelo family or that there are guards patrolling the area.

Annabeth just walks ahead as Percy defends his actions to Thalia and the rest. He jogs a bit to catch up with her. Annabeth says she's bored of just listening to the waves so Percy tells her about his sailing adventures with his dad. She asks a lot of questions and he promises to take her sailing soon.

Eventually she announces that she is tired from walking but is too lazy to walk back to the campfire so she and Percy just sit down a few meters away from the water. They talk about silly things and serious things and Percy has his arm around her and she's leaning into his side and it's all so perfect he could die.

"Percy." "Yeah?" "Why…never mind." "Annabeth." "It's nothing." "_Annabeth._" "Just drop it, okay?" "_Anna_beth." Silence. "Anna_beth_." "Shut up!" "Anna— " "Do you like me or not?!" "I—what?!"

Percy's heart is beating a mile a minute _of course_ he likes her doesn't she _know_—oh, of course she didn't know. He hasn't said anything.

"I— it's…" Percy runs a hand through her hair trying to compose a coherent thought. The girl he's liked—_loved_, for the past six years of his life had asked him the million dollar question and he couldn't get a word out. Years of schooling had gone to waste on this poor schmuck who couldn't quite articulate his feelings.

"Percy, my legs are asleep again. We should head back." Her voice sounds disappointed and a little tired. He stands and offers his hand but she ignores it and gets up on her own. They are twelve yards away from the bonfire when Percy finds his voice.

He tugs on her hand, which he stubbornly grabbed and held on to, and forces her to face him.

"I'm in love with you." He says it so quietly, the waves crashing onto the shore threaten to drown the words out. Maybe it's because she's wanted to hear those words from him for years or because she was so attuned to his voice but Annabeth hears him loud and clear.

One wave. Two waves. One kiss, then another, and another.

Percy presses three light kisses onto her lips so light it almost seems like he's asking for permission. Annabeth lets go of his hands and Percy tries to swallow his disappointment as he takes one step back but Annabeth follows him and threads her fingers into his hair and gives him a proper kiss.

Percy places his hands on her waist (now he understands why curves are so goddamn attractive) but pulls away slightly. He's just been kissed by the girl of his dreams and he needs to catch his breath, but he doesn't want to stop kissing her just yet so he leans his forehead onto hers keeping her close but not too close. Proximity is paradise but he isn't quite ready to die yet.

They kiss a few more times before they realize that their friends have put out the campfire and gone indoors. It's a little past midnight so they walk back to the beach house in silence. Sometimes Annabeth lets out a few uncharacteristic giggles and Percy lets out one exhilarated laugh and spins Annabeth around, his hands around her waist.

When they get back their friends pounce on them and it's a while before they're back in each other's arms. Percy, ever the gentleman, offers to sleep on the floor.

In love as they are (Annabeth whispered it back just before they went indoors), Percy is pretty sure they're both not ready to take that step and he's scared he might push a little too hard. Now that he's kissed her he wants to taste everything.

He admits as much when Annabeth rolls her eyes and tells him that they'll be fine and this makes Annabeth blush a deeper blush than when they were clueless sixteen year olds in Central Park. He makes her blush like that a few more times over the summer but it has more to do with what he does than what he says.

They keep it up for the first two weeks but the third week has Nico introducing them to alcohol and they pass out on the bed after an intense make out session. Annabeth decides she likes waking up right next to Percy even though she says he drools and she refuses to kiss him until he's brushed his teeth (Annabeth always smells good to him) so Percy stops sleeping on the floor.

On their first official date Annabeth discovers that Percy is the jealous type. The _extremely_ jealous type. He nearly breaks a surfer's arm in two when he sees the smarmy idiot try to put his arm around Annabeth as she orders a drink.

They fight about it and Annabeth almost drops it but Percy calmly tells her "It's just—what's mine is mine." "Oh, and I'm yours now? What is this the 16th ce—"

Percy smashes his lips onto hers before she can get another syllable out. It's the first time he's ever kissed her like that. Annabeth feels like he's branding her, he probably is. She likes it, hell, she moans into his mouth a few seconds into the kiss. And when he stops kissing her and whispers "What is mine I intend to keep" Annabeth voices no objections.

Not all their fights end like that. They are both hardheaded and temperamental; and sometimes Annabeth is condescending (she is shocked beyond words when he calls her that and she cries for two days); and Percy is too dense (like, hello, of course he had to tell her about Rachel who ran into them at the pier even though they _never_ dated and she was_ in a relationship with his cousin_). But they're miserable without each other and even when Annabeth was crying, it was on Percy's shoulder and when Percy was explaining to her through their bedroom door that Rachel was nothing, he was still apologising and making impossible, romantic promises.

They stay in Malibu for four weeks and then head home. Percy holds Annabeth's hand throughout the entire flight because Percy is deathly afraid of airplanes. "We could get zapped out of the plane like bugs." "Turbulence is a sign that people are not meant to fly."

Thalia hates heights too but she can manage without the handholding, she prefers valium. "I'd like to be awake when we fall through the air, that way I can finally say 'I told you so.'" Percy deadpans and Annabeth is half sure he means it.

When they arrive home Percy arranges for Annabeth and Sally to have dinner, Paul thankfully makes himself scarce. As much as he likes his stepdad, he'd prefer Annabeth to meet his real dad first, or at least make it an option. His two favourite women adore one another and Sally scolds him for taking so long to introduce them.

He gets his wish on his birthday, Paul has been busy with a writing workshop so he's never around when Annabeth is and his dad drops in to say hello. Annabeth feels a little overwhelmed meeting Percy's dad but he is friendly and warm and it's obvious that he loves Percy so they get along just fine.

Annabeth learns that Poseidon and her mother have worked together in the past and Poseidon tells her he should introduce her to the dean of a certain school with a great architecture program should she ever be in New York the same time as him. She gets flustered and Percy grins a wide grin and tells his dad that Annabeth probably loves him a little more than she does Percy.

It's pretty much the best summer ever and the only conflict is when either of their families want to have family time or when their best friends insist on bonding time.

Senior year blows past them pretty quickly, they're too wrapped up in each other to really notice the passing of time but suddenly it's after graduation and it's prom night (stupid school tradition) and although they go and get all dressed up neither of them is really in the mood to party.

Annabeth has gotten into that really good school with the excellent program Poseidon mentioned, the kind that sends its students to study architecture all over the world. Percy isn't really sure about college so he's taking a year off to travel and learn about his dad's business.

They are slow-dancing when Percy feels it, a sudden urge to do something for the both of them. Something wild, reckless, and crazy. "Come with me" "Where are we going?" "Just, trust me."

Annabeth doesn't ask anymore questions. He drives them to the docks and he takes her hand and leads her to a boat. It belongs to his dad but the caretaker knows Percy and lets him take it even though he warns Percy about the dangers of sailing in the night.

It's not the first time he's sailed at night and even his father remarked that Percy inherited his gift of perfect bearings when they were out sailing (although driving he sometimes managed to get lost on his way home). They go far but not too far. The winds are pretty favorable but Percy doesn't want to take chances, not with Annabeth on board.

He shoots their friends a text message then turns of his phone and asks Annabeth to do the same. She complies silently. Percy is checking on the anchors and tightening some ropes when she comes up behind him.

"I'll miss you." His adam's apple grows to the size of a bowling ball and he lets out a strangled cry before burying his head onto her shoulder. He apologises and so does she and they make a million irrational promises about calling everyday and romantic meet ups and never even looking at another girl or boy, they break these promises eventually but they won't allow the promises to break them, Annabeth is too smart and Percy is too in love. They sit on the bow until it gets too cold and then they curl up together inside the cabin.

What happens after is beautiful and tragic and perfect in the way only lovemaking can be. They don't remember who initiated what but Percy looks at her almost reverently asks a million and one times _is this is okay?_ and tells her _she's beautiful_ and means it _every_ single time and Annabeth says _yes_ and _more_ and _i love you_ until she forgets the words because it feels so good and Percy tries to be gentle, controlled and perfect and he is until he feels her walls clench around him and what he is is shattered and he loses himself in her completely and says her name in a way that makes Annabeth see stars again.

Later, after they are done being a sweaty mass of tangled limbs and exchanged more i love you's than could be counted they head back and turn their phones back on. There are a few innuendo filled messages from their friends and a voicemail from Percy's dad about the recklessness of sailing at night.

They ignore those and focus on coming up with a concrete game plan for the coming year. They map out Percy's itinerary on a paper napkin and Annabeth points out the places their paths coincide until finally their parents call and ask them to come home.

Annabeth is still wearing her dress (complete with a wilting corsage) and Percy is in half of his tux (he left the jacket and bow tie in the car) and halfway back to the car they realise they look pretty funny. They laugh the entire way to her home.

He drops her off and from that point on they speed off into their futures which don't always bring them as close together as they would like, but close enough.

* * *

AN: None of the characters are mine. I won't promise a sequel. I'm working on a PercaBeth story but don't expect it for months. Seriously, don't hold your breath.


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